


Wine & Moonlight

by Raestlyn



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Cullen pines, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Josephine intervenes, Leliana plots, Solas misbehaves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-13
Updated: 2015-10-13
Packaged: 2018-04-26 06:17:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4993456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raestlyn/pseuds/Raestlyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The wee hours at the Winter Palace</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wine & Moonlight

**Author's Note:**

> A snippet of something much larger I'm working on, also works as stand-alone Solas smut. Because we all need that from time to time. First thing I've ever posted. Which is terrifying.

The Winter Palace was still buzzing with activity, even though midnight had long since passed.  Maker, would this night never end?  Cullen stared somewhat sullenly at the dance floor, trying to calculate an exit route that would avoid any and all interaction with the dreadful women who had been clamoring about him all night.  Perhaps he could jump out a window?

“You will miss your chance if you wait much longer, Commander.”  Cullen jumped slightly at her words.  Maker’s breath, Leliana could move silently when she chose to!  He wondered how long she had been standing there, studying him.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

“Please.  You have been watching her all night, glaring daggers at any noble who has dared be so bold as to dance with her.  Just ask her, she will not refuse you.”

“I haven’t…”  Cullen sighed in defeat.  There was no use denying it, particularly to the Spymaster.  “It’s foolish.  There is no logical reason I should want to dance with her.  She has to dance with those damnable nobles, lest their dainty egos be damaged and a war provoked.  But there is no reason I should dance with her.”

“Commander, there is no logic involved with dancing.  You are a man and she is a beautiful, enchanting woman.  Is that not reason enough?  Besides, Josie will be disappointed if you let all her efforts at training you go to waste.  We wouldn’t want that, would we?”  Cullen scowled at her, but Leliana simply laughed.  “Then it is settled.  You must have one dance, to appease Josie.  If you do not wish it to be with the Inquisitor, then I am sure one of your throng of admirers would be eager to oblige.  The choice is yours.”

He shuddered at the thought of actually dancing with any of the nobility that had been hovering around him all evening.  He looked at the Spymaster with a sigh of resignation.  “You are a cruel woman, Leliana.”  She gave him an innocent smile before slipping away into the crowd.  Seeing he was once again available, he was descended upon by hopeful nobles.  He excused himself somewhat less than politely and went to look for the Inquisitor.  He finally found her, alone on a balcony.  She was fidgeting with the fabric of her skirt, glaring at it as though it had in some way offended her.  “Something wrong, Inquisitor?”

“This stupid dress!  It amazes me that I can simultaneously feel so encumbered and yet so…umm…exposed.”  She was fairly certain her breasts might overflow the low neckline at any moment.  “But our dear Ambassador was quite insistent that bloodstained formal attire no longer counted as formal attire, and she stuck me in this.”  She gestured at the gown.  It was a deep shade of green that complimented the violet of her eyes.  Exquisitely tailored, with intricate silver embroidery on the bodice.  Cullen’s cheeks reddened slightly as he thought that, in spite of the Inquisitor’s protests, the dress was actually quite flattering on her.  And would look even better in a crumpled heap on the floor…  Her voice snapped him out of his daydream.  “I think Josie secretly just wanted to torture me.”

Cullen laughed at the thought.  “Trust me, I understand.  I have been informed that I am required to dance at least once this evening, lest I incur the Ambassador’s wrath.”

“Oh, the horror!  You were wise to come out here to hide.”

Cullen awkwardly rubbed at the back of his neck, briefly considering running away.  “I, um… actually I was wondering… I mean, if you don’t mind… I was going to ask you.  To dance, that is.”  Dammit, why could he never manage to sound like anything other than a bumbling fool around her?

The Inquisitor made an attempt at a curtsey, which was dreadful.  “I would be delighted, Commander.”  She smiled warmly at him, and Cullen did his best to ignore the way it made his heart skip a beat.

“You are a brave woman, Inquisitor.”  He moved closer to her, placing a hand on her waist, and just like that they were dancing.  Not nearly as difficult as he’d imagined.  He smiled at her, on the verge of actually relaxing for a moment.  Then he glanced down.  Maker’s breath, he could see straight into the top of her gown!  No wonder she had mentioned feeling exposed.  He tried to look away, to look anywhere but at those glorious, creamy breasts gleaming in the moonlight.  He suddenly regretted not running away when he’d had the chance.

The Inquisitor sensed his tension, but misjudged the cause.  “Cullen, relax, you’re doing fine.  Josie would be proud.”  He let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, and let the tension in his shoulders ease.  “There, isn’t that better?”  She spoke softly, smiling up at him, completely oblivious to the effect she had on him.  It would be so simple to just lean in and kiss her…but he was painfully aware that she only had eyes for Solas.

The song finally came to an end, and Cullen reluctantly relinquished his hold on her.  Looking back towards the ballroom, the Inquisitor saw Solas leaning in the doorway, watching them with a rather amused expression.  Her face lit up at the sight of him, and Cullen tried valiantly to deny his jealously of the elf as she ran to the mage, slipping her hand into his.  Solas leaned down to kiss her forehead, but his eyes never left the Commander.

Cullen bowed stiffly.  “Thank you for the dance, Inquisitor.  Goodnight.”

She laughed as she gave a terrible curtsey in return.  “My pleasure, Commander.  I shall report to the Ambassador that you discharged your duty admirably.  Goodnight.”  Cullen slipped back into the ballroom, eager for the damned night to just end already.

The Inquisitor wrapped her arms around Solas’ waist, grateful to finally be alone with him.  He ran his fingers through her hair and began to lightly kiss his way up her neck.  His warm breath in her ear sent a shiver down her spine.  “It seems our stoic Commander secretly wishes to bed the fair Inquisitor.  Interesting.”

The Inquisitor pulled away from him as she burst out laughing.  “Solas, that’s crazy!  What, just because he asked me to dance?” 

He raised an eyebrow at her with a smirk.  “Could you not see it in the way he looked at you?  He was practically drooling with lust.  I thought women were supposed to be attuned to that sort of thing.”

She headed to the darkest corner of the balcony, surveying the garden as she leaned on the stone railing, hoping the darkness would conceal how flushed her cheeks had grown.  “I suppose some are, however, I… lack experience in such matters.”

Solas came up behind her, slipping his hands around her waist.  She leaned back slightly into the warmth of his chest.  “Perhaps it is time you were educated on the matter, da’len.” He began to nuzzle at her neck.

“I do not want for knowledge, Solas.  Dorian has a dreadful habit of leaving _The Randy Dowager Quarterly_ on my desk.  Quite by mistake, he has repeatedly assured me.  I simply… lack practical experience.”

“Hmmm, a demonstration, then.”  He spun her around to face him, drawing her into a deep kiss.  He tasted of the sweet wine he’d been drinking all night.  One arm wrapped around her, pulling her body tightly against his.  His other hand twined through her dark hair, tightening into a fist at the nape of her neck, eliciting a small gasp from the Inquisitor.  He pulled back slightly, looking down at her upturned face.  “This, Vhenan, is how a man looks at you when he wishes to lay with you.”  His eyes burned with a dark intensity she had not seen in him before.  He traced a trail of soft kisses down her neck to her shoulder, sending little shocks of electricity through her.  “When he wants nothing more than to explore your entire body with his mouth.”  He kissed his way towards her chest, deftly freeing her barely-restrained bosom from her dress.

“Solas!  You can’t seriously mean to…”  He looked up at her with an evil grin before taking one of her nipples into his mouth, teasing it with his tongue before lightly biting down on it.  Her protests were forgotten as her eyes closed and her head fell back.  After a moment he shifted his focus to her other breast, not wanting it to feel left out. 

“Of course, there are other places he wishes to explore as well.”  He leaned down and slipped a hand under the hem of her gown, letting the tips of his fingers graze across her leg as he rose to kiss her breasts again.  His hand moved around to the front, gently kneading at her inner thigh until her legs parted just enough to give him the access he wanted.  He cupped the warmth between her legs and gave a slight squeeze.  With a soft moan, she involuntarily began to press against his hand.  He pushed her smallclothes aside and parted her folds, his thumb tracing a lazy circle around her clit.  He felt her body tense against him, her heart pounding in her chest. His breath was hot on her ear as he whispered, “Until finally, he finds the true treasure.”  He slipped two fingers inside her as he pressed his mouth over hers to muffle her moans.  He began a slow rhythm with his fingers, then began to rock his hips against her in time.  Soon he felt her tighten around him as she neared her peak, and let his hips buck harder against her as he thrust his fingers as deep into her as possible.  He sank his teeth into the tender flesh of her neck, and the exquisite blend of pleasure and pain sent her over the edge.  Her body trembled as the waves of bliss crashed over her, leaving her clinging desperately to his arms to keep from falling.

He held her close, her head pressed against his chest, as her breathing began to return to normal.  When she finally looked up at him, her eyes were sparkling, and she could not stop grinning.  “Solas, that was…”

“That was but a fraction of what I intend to do to you tonight.”

“Here?  On the balcony?” she asked with a laugh.

“Why not?” He put his hands on her waist and lifted her up so she was seated on the balcony rail.  She wrapped her legs around him as best her gown would allow, drawing him close for another kiss.

A squeal of horror announced Josephine’s presence on the balcony.  “No, no, no!  What are you doing?”  The Inquisitor tried to disentangle herself, but Solas held her firmly where she sat.  She did manage to slip her breasts back into the confines of her dress, at least.

“I am kissing the woman I love, whilst contemplating how best to bury myself in the exquisite pleasure that lies between her legs.  Kindly go away.”  Solas’ tone was matter-of-fact, as though he were simply telling her the time.  Josephine gasped in shock, then rushed forward and started smacking Solas’ arm.

“No. You. Are. Not!”  Each word was punctuated with another smack.  “You are going straight to your room.  Right now.  Alone!”

The Inquisitor had to struggle not to laugh at the diminutive woman attempting to herd the elf towards the door.  She managed to get down from the railing, but Solas still had a tight grip on her.  “Vhenan, perhaps you should go, before she resorts to dragging you by the ear.  I will see you in the morning.” 

Solas looked at the Ambassador and growled before returning his attention to the woman in his arms.  He cupped her cheek with one hand, bringing her eyes to meet his, burning dark with desire.  His other hand lingered on her arse as he subtly pressed his hips against her.  Nothing that would attract the already outraged Ambassador’s attention, but more than sufficient to make the Inquisitor aware of the hard and throbbing situation that had arisen in his pants.  Her breath caught in her throat, and for a moment Josephine was completely forgotten as he began to kiss her again.  Another sharp smack to Solas’ arm reminded them that they were not alone. Solas sighed heavily.  The hand on her arse gave a gentle squeeze as he breathed “Ar nuvenin ma,” into her ear. A sharp nip at her earlobe, then he grudgingly retreated from the balcony.

Josephine watched him go, hands on her hips, glowering her disapproval.  As soon as Solas was out of sight, she whirled around to face the Inquisitor, who had braced herself for a stern lecture on propriety.  But instead, Josie was…giggling?  “Oh, Inquisitor, I am so sorry!  It’s just… I never imagined such a side of Solas even existed!  He is always so serious!”  She dissolved into another fit of giggles.

“I confess, I was taken somewhat by surprise as well.  I suspect he has had much more wine than he realizes; his kisses tasted strongly of it.”

Josephine leaned against the stone railing with a wistful sigh.  “Ah, wine-flavored kisses, stolen in the moonlight – so romantic!  Ahem.  You understand I could not permit it, however.  Should you have been discovered!  No, we cannot afford such a scandal.  Never mind.  Let us make you presentable.”

The Inquisitor groaned at the thought of entering the ballroom again.  “Really?  I have to go back in there?  When do these people sleep?”

“All part of the Game, dear Inquisitor.  A small thing like sleep is not nearly so important as the opportunity to be seen in the right place with the right people.”  Josie darted around the Inquisitor as she spoke, deftly pinning stray hairs back into submission. “There!  That should…wait, what is… _teeth marks?_ ”

The Inquisitor felt her face flush with embarrassment as she quickly raised a hand to her neck to cover the offending bruise.  “Erm…yes?”

Josephine threw her hands in the air.  “I give up, you are a lost cause!”  But there was no malice in her voice.  “Off to bed, then.  I will make your goodnights to the court.  Do not get too comfortable, though.  The sun rises in two, perhaps three hours at most, and the carriage drivers will be eager to depart.”

The Inquisitor threw her arms around the Ambassador and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.  “Thank you, Josie.  For everything.”  She hurried from the balcony, eager to find her bed before anyone else could attempt to claim her attention.

**Author's Note:**

> Ar nuvenin ma - I want you


End file.
